


In The Darkness

by rumpledspinster



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, No Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2019-01-23 14:58:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12510000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rumpledspinster/pseuds/rumpledspinster
Summary: An AU in which Belle, Rumple, and Jefferson are members of an archaeological dig an find themselves trapped in the darkness after an unfortunate accident.





	In The Darkness

**Author's Note:**

> This is my Rumbelle Revelry fic for 2017. My prompts were undead, dreaded, and potion.

Rumple Gold hadn’t always been brave. 

He had come from a broken home. His father and mother seemed to share nothing in common but alcoholism and a cruel nature. By the time he was three his mother had left him, and his father followed suit a year later, leaving him with his aunts. His aunts were caring and comforting. At last he finally knew what it was to be loved and wanted. His aunts lived out in the country where neighbors were few and the path to town was a long one. They had offered to send him to school, not wanting him to miss out on having friends, but he had found the children there to be cruel and their treatment of him had made him feel the way he had always felt around his father. Scared, helpless, and worthless. And so, his aunties had begun to homeschool him and teach him their trades. They were spinsters and he had taken to the spinning wheel like a duck to water. They also were experts at foraging and gardening, and he discovered a love of plants.  


When he was six years old, his aunties decided to begin caring for an infant from the neighboring farm. The wee babe was a boy called Jefferson, the only child of a young couple. His mother was said to be of fragile health and his father couldn’t keep the farm running with an infant under his arm, and so Rumple’s aunts had agreed to take care of him during the days. Rumple adored little Jefferson. His aunts had explained that babies must learn everything, and that perhaps Rumple could teach him how to be a child. Rumple took this responsibility very seriously. He was always encouraging and supporting Jefferson. The aunts would giggle as they watched Rumple try to teach Jefferson to smile, to crawl, to use a spoon… Rumple never tired of being with Jefferson. The now four-year-old Jefferson thought that the sun rose and set in Rumple. The aunties would roll their eyes every time Jefferson would say, “I’ll ask Rumple.” It had become his go-to response. “It’s cold out. Be sure to wear a coat,” The aunties would remind as the boys would make their way to the door.  
“I’ll ask Rumple,” Jefferson would reply, and then look to Rumple for confirmation that indeed it was cold out.  
“It’s time for midday meal,” the aunties would call.  
Jefferson would look to Rumple, “Is it time to eat?” Rumple would nod and smile. Rumple, for his part, loved that Jefferson thought him so clever. Jefferson made Rumple feel like someone deserving of adoration and Rumple always tried his best to live up to it. 

 

One terrible night, Rumple and his aunties were awoken by the screams of animals. They rushed out of their cottage and saw smoke and flames in the direction of Jefferson’s family’s homestead. They grabbed buckets and rushed the mile down the road to where the house was engulfed in flames. The neighbors from the other three farms in the area were arriving then as well and quickly set to dousing the flames with water from the troughs as others went to pump more up from the well, and others went to rescue and calm the animals. At last the fire was out.. Some of the men went into the rubble and came out with grave faces. Frozen, Rumple’s aunts hugged him between them, as they all looked at the charred remains of Jefferson’s home. 

 

Rumple couldn’t think of anything but Jefferson. Jefferson was more than a friend, Rumple had come to feel responsible for him. Rumple’s sense of responsibility to Jefferson outweighed all his fear and uncertainty. Cowardice wouldn’t stand in his way!

Rumple ducked out of his aunts’ embrace and made a mad dash into the charred rubble of the farm house. “Jefferson! Jefferson!” Rumple called out. Rumple saw the burned skeletons of Jefferson’s parents pinned beneath a couple of support beams and stopped momentarily in shock of the sight. It was strange to see a person no longer look like a person. 

He heard his aunts call out to him from the doorway. “Come away Rumple.” 

 

No! Rumple had to find Jefferson. 

“Jefferson!” As Rumple darted around the rubble shouting, he felt his foot catch on something and noticed that his footsteps on this part of the floor sounded hollow. He knelt and brushed away the ash to reveal a trap door to a root cellar. He yanked it open and made his way down the stone steps. It was dark in the root cellar. Rumple peered around the dark tomb like space trying to see. “Jefferson?” Rumple put his hands out and began to feel his way along the wall of shelves and jars. He could hear his aunts at the trap door, shouting for him to come back. He ignored their command and continued to make his way deeper into the darkness. He was beginning to feel his courage slipping, when he suddenly heard a whimper. “Jefferson! It’s going to be okay. Reach out to me.” Rumple kept moving and felt a little hand grab his knee. Rumple scooped Jefferson up and brought him to the stairs. 

“Oh my goodness! The boy is alive!” His aunties were white as sheets peering down the steps to where Rumple was urging Jefferson to climb up. Rumple was right behind him and as soon as they were both at the top he put his arm around Jefferson and began to lead him out of the rubble. “Don’t look, okay?”

 

Jefferson whimpered against Rumple’s chest, “Okay.”

Rumple held Jefferson’s hand as they walked back to their home. “You’re going to live with me now,” Rumple whispered as they walked along. Jefferson nodded and squeezed Rumple’s hand.

Once the aunties had went to bed up in the loft, Rumple crawled over to Jefferson’s pallet. “You can sleep with me.” Jefferson hugged him, and they crawled to Rumple’s pallet. Rumple pulled the blanket over them both and held Jefferson close. He whispered to Jefferson, “Don’t worry. I’ll keep you safe.”

***

Jefferson and Rumple grew up together closer than most true brothers could ever hope to be. Rumple took on the role of brother, friend, protector, teacher, the trusted authority. When Rumple was alone he still found himself feeling like that small child who was always so scared and unsure, but when he was with Jefferson he was a courageous hero. 

Jefferson carried the trauma of that terrible night with him as he grew up. He confided in Rumple that the night of the fire he had awoken to sounds in the dark. He looked toward the sound and saw a pair of shining eyes staring at him. He had gotten scared by the creature in the dark and hid in the root cellar because he would’ve had to run by the creature to get to the ladder that led to the loft where his parents slept. He realized now that the terrible creature was probably no more than a raccoon, but at the time it had terrified him. He supposed it must have knocked one of the logs in the fire and that’s how the house had become ablaze. The root cellar was dug out of the ground, and so he hadn’t known the house was on fire as he had cowered in the dark corner of the cellar. He had heard his parents screaming and had thought that the terrible creature was killing them. 

 

When it became quiet, he was certain that at any moment the monster in the darkness would come for him. But then a miracle happened. He heard Rumple. Jefferson was too scared to even speak, but he silently prayed “Please don’t leave me Rumple. Please come find me.” From the moment that he grabbed Rumple’s knee, Rumple became safety in his mind. All the bad things in the world were bearable if Rumple was with him. And so, Jefferson grew to be adventurous and outgoing because he never felt as if he were without a safety net. Rumple would always be there. 

 

Years later, Jefferson and Rumple had gone on to work together on archeological digs, Rumple as the expert and Jefferson as his assistant. It was on a dig that they met Belle and Alice. Jefferson had been instantly enamored with Alice as Rumple had been with Belle. Jefferson, being outgoing and gregarious, had no problem starting up a relationship with Alice. And they had moved fast. They were married after four months of dating and no sooner was the honeymoon over they announced that they were expecting. At which point Jefferson set his mind to getting a happy ever after for his brother. When his encouraging and pleading to Rumple to be brave enough to ask Belle out had failed, he had simply done it for him. Jefferson had surprised Belle in her office at the university where she and Rumple both worked in between digs. “Hi Belle.” Belle looked up from the stack of papers she was grading. “Hi Jefferson. How’s married life treating you?” 

Jefferson smiled. “I love it.” 

Jefferson strode forward and took a seat on Belle’s office couch. “So, I was thinking that you and my brother should date.” 

 

Belle’s face went red. “Alice promised she wouldn’t tell anyone!” 

 

Jefferson gave a cheshire cat grin, “She didn’t have to tell me anything. I know moony eyes when I see them, but apparently you don’t because my brother has been mooning over you for ages now.” 

 

Belle’s face went from embarrassed to hopeful in the blink of an eye. “He likes me?” 

 

Jefferson leaned toward her across the stack of papers. “He adores you.” 

Belle sucked in her bottom lip as a smile crept across her face. “Why has he not said anything?” 

 

Jefferson sighed, “My brother is shy. He’s brave when he must be, but he’s always worried about not being good enough. He always tried to avoid things that he didn’t feel confident about. He’s afraid he’s not good enough for you and so he’s unwilling to try to have a relationship with you out of fear that it will fail.” 

 

Belle considered his words. “What if I asked him? Would he accept?” 

 

Jefferson thought for a moment. “Start by putting yourself out there. Tell him that you like him and that you were afraid that the feelings weren’t mutual. I’m confident that he will confess his feelings then.” 

 

Belle smiled and started to stand up only to sit back down with a sad sigh.  
Jefferson frowned. “What’s wrong?” 

 

Belle motioned to the stack of papers. “I usually have an assistant to help with all these papers, but someone got her pregnant.” 

 

Jefferson couldn’t help but chuckle, “I couldn’t help it. But if it’s material that Alice is familiar with, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind helping out a little.”  
Belle thought for a moment, “It wouldn’t really be fair to her to give them all to her.” Belle looked over the papers she had left and then smiled. She pulled out a small handful. “These are my best students, so their work shouldn’t be too labor intensive to grade. Take these to Alice and I’ll grade the rest myself.” Jefferson eyed the pile she was keeping, “Are you sure you can handle all of those?” Belle shrugged. “If I have to, I’ll skip lecturing tomorrow and do a test prep study session.”  
Jefferson smiled, “Yay! Everyone wins.”

***

 

Six months later Belle and Rumple were married, and three months after that they became godparents to a little girl Jefferson and Alice had chosen to call Grace. Two little boys who at one time had thought themselves alone, now found themselves at the center of a growing family. 

 

All was wonderful until tragedy struck. 

 

Jefferson and Rumple were working together grading reports in Rumple’s office while Grace slept on a pallet under the window. Alice had stopped by and asked if they were staying late today. She, Jefferson, and Grace always rode home together. Jefferson had sighed and said that they really should get these reports done now, and that he would only be a couple hours longer. Rumple then offered to give Jefferson a ride home so that Alice could take the car. Alice had happily agreed, saying that she was definitely in need of a long bath. Jefferson had chuckled and said that he would keep Grace with him then. After all, she was comfortably napping, and he had the car seat. That way Alice could have a relaxing evening. Alice had kissed him and whispered, “I love you so much,” and then left. 

When Rumple, Jefferson, and Grace arrived at Jefferson’s apartment they saw that there were two officers waiting at the door. Alice had stopped at a liquor store on the way home to buy a bottle of wine and had been shot fatally when the store was robbed. Jefferson couldn’t speak. When Rumple looked at him he no longer was his confident charming brother, he was once again a scared four-year-old. 

 

Rumple took his face in his hands. “Look at me. We’re going to go to my house. I’ll come back and pack some things for you both.” Jefferson nodded silently.

***

 

Rumple and Belle both had told Jefferson repeatedly that he and Grace could stay with them indefinitely, but as time went on Jefferson felt he had to get a place of their own.

 

One night as Rumple and Jefferson sat on the couch and watched the fire in the hearth crackle and pop, Jefferson had confided, “First my parents, then Alice. I just feel so powerless. I need to get a place of my own if only to prove to myself that I can. To prove that I can do it alone.” 

 

Rumple put his arm on his shoulder, “But you don’t have to do it alone.” 

 

Jefferson scooted closer to Rumple, “I know, and it’s knowing that that makes me brave enough to try.”

 

Jefferson and Rumple talked it over and decided that change would be good for Jefferson, that it would be good to get away from the university environment for a while. They decided that they would sign on for an archaeological dig, and were thrilled when Belle took next to no prodding to agree she was coming, too. 

 

Grace was eight now, and for her part, loved that she got to travel the world with her family. Especially the part where she always ended up with a present of some kind from the places they went. She had one whole suitcase devoted to colorful dolls and stuffed animals. 

This time they were in Egypt. She and her daddy were staying in a small room at the same hotel as Uncle Rumple and Aunt Belle, which was nice because sometimes they lived in a tent and she hated that you had to walk so far to go to the bathroom. Also, her Aunt and Uncle had a big room! Like a whole house! And they let her stay in it all day. On this particular day she had watched as they all sat and read papers quietly and made notes in notebooks, while she sketched in her own notebook. Then the phone rang and the person on the other end had said that they had to go to work. Aunt Belle had left the room and came back with a tray with a silver dome on top. She sat it down on the table and took off the lid. Grace licked her lips as she saw that the tray held warm aish bread, a bowl of baba ghanoush to dip it in, macaroni béchamel, and for dessert basbousa and baklava. 

 

Her papa had come over and given her one of his hugs that lifted her off her feet. He had kissed her and told her to stay in the room, eat her dinner, brush her teeth, and that they would be back as soon as they could. Then Uncle Rumple kissed her on the head and told her that she could listen to the radio if she wanted and that if she got tired she could sleep in their bed. Then Aunt Belle reminded her that she should probably not listen to any scary radio shows. 

Grace considered, “Does Dimension X count?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“How about the Hermit’s Cave?”

 

“Too scary.”

 

“Then what should I listen to?”

 

Belle smirked and turned on the radio. “Here. They’ll play music for a while, then the history program You Are There, and then an episode of Sherlock Holmes. Be sure you pay attention because I might test you later.” Belle winked.

***

 

It was late afternoon when they arrived at the tomb they had just begun to excavate. Radar and historical data had shown that the location showed promise. A dig had been planned out, the area gridded, and excavation begun. Belle had hoped the site would turn out to be a city or a village, the anthropologist in her found the mundane routines of ancient everyday life to be an exciting mystery to uncover. Most archeologists Rumple had worked with dreamed of being the next Lord Carnarvon, discovering some one time very important person; but not Belle. Belle believed that it was the stories of everyday people that were truly fascinating; vignettes of ancient life. Alas, the site didn’t pan out to be the type of city Belle was hoping for. It now appeared to be a necropolis, a city of the dead.As the small group disembarked from the jeep and began to set up, Rumple saw Belle sigh at the sight of the tomb. He put his arms around his wife and rested his head upon her shoulder. “No need to look so glum sweetheart. I’m sure there will be lots of lovely high-ro-glyphs in there for you to decipher.” 

Belle rolled her eyes and sighed, “It’s hieroglyphs, it comes from two Greek words originally meaning carved by priests.” Belle turned in his embrace and huffed at the sight of the smirk on his face. “But you knew that didn’t you.” 

 

Rumple chuckled, “I was hoping to get the linguist in you excited.”  
Belle wrapped her arms around his waist and tilted her head back so she could look up at him. “How is it you’re never disappointed by a dig?”  
Rumple shrugged slightly and smiled, “Well, my passion has always been chemistry and paleobotany. No matter where we go or what we are excavating, there is likely to be plant remains and on the off chance that there isn’t… well, you do know that chemistry is the study of matter don’t you?” 

 

Belle playfully pouted. “Yes, but imagine how disappointed you’d be if we were at a site that didn’t have any plants or matter.” Rumple laughed. “So outer space? I’m pretty sure I’d get over the disappointment.”

“Come on, you lovebirds.” Jefferson rolled his eyes as he walked past them with their backpacks.

Belle and Rumple made their way over to the tomb. Rumple cursed the sand beneath their feet. Belle looped her arm through his in an effort to give him support. “Did you wrap your ankle?” 

 

He could hear the concern in her voice and he felt a pang of guilt. “No. It gets hot in my boot and uncomfortable on my heel.” 

 

Belle sighed, “Well I expect you to put your bad leg up when we get back to the hotel and ice it.” 

 

Rumple smiled and placed a kiss on her temple. “Yes, Mrs. Gold.”

Jefferson looked up at them from where he sat on the ground. “I’ve documented all the writing on this slab. Can you read it, Belle?”

Belle looked the hieroglyphs over. “Yes. The writing here, while old, is not too ancient. If this is anything to go by, I’ll probably be able to read most of the writing we find on sight. But if we find anything more ancient I’ll have to cross reference.”

Belle knelt next to Jefferson. “It says ‘Here was I, Hotep, presented with… invested with the working tools of those who build. In my hand I, Hotep, did take… took the tools of the second grade of workmen in stone… the plumb, the square, and the level.” 

 

Belle stood up and turned her attention to a large wall painting. “Look at how bright the colors still are.”

George Midas, the head of the excavation, came up behind them. “The day before yesterday we broke through a place that goes down to the city underneath this one. One of the workmen found a big stone slab and we cleared it away completely. I’m in hopes that it is a tomb that has been spared from tomb robbing. Go take a look at it. We’ve got the big shears rigged over it now.” 

 

Rumple looked off at the horizon. “It’s going to be dark soon. I think we should put it off until tomorrow.”

“That’s what flashlights are for. Now go figure out whose tomb it is.” Midas huffed and then trudged in the direction of the rig.

Jefferson shook his head. “What he really wants to know is if there is any treasure in there.”

Rumple shared a knowing look with Jefferson. They had worked with Midas before and they knew that when it came to Midas he was true to his name. The only thing that man cared about was treasure and notoriety.

It was a half mile trek to the spot Midas had mentioned, a little clearing on the edge of the necropolis where the beams of the shears loomed ominously against the darkening sky of orange and red. There was something…dreaded, something deathly about the sight before them. It wasn’t an archeologist’s job to be sentimental or superstitious, none of them would stay in the job very long if they were, but the half-inch steel cable attached to a very large block of stone was about to be the only thing separating them from something that happened over forty centuries ago and Rumple couldn’t help but feel apprehensive. He shivered, and it had nothing to do with the wind blowing over the Egyptian sand at sunset.

Midas motioned for the shears to be started up. The worker operating the engine nodded and announced that it would be a few minutes as the slab weighed nearly seventy tons. Rumple felt his chest tighten at the man’s words.The diesel smell from the engine combined with the cacophony of noise it produced had him feeling somewhat nauseous and edgy. He noticed Belle having some trouble breathing. “Are you alright sweetheart? Do you need your inhaler?” 

 

Belle took his hand. “I’ll be all right for now. My inhaler is in my backpack. I’ll grab it if I get any worse.” 

As the slab began to lift, air rushed out of the tomb and the smells of spikenard, myrrh, and cinnamon assaulted their senses. Funerary spices.  
Belle began to cough, so Rumple took her inhaler out of the side pouch of the backpack she had slung on her shoulder. “Inhaler now.” 

 

Belle rolled her eyes and smiled as she took the inhaler and took a couple of puffs before returning it to its pocket. Jefferson waved a hand in front of his face dramatically. “I know the air in there was probably breathed by a pharaoh and we should feel honored, but if air had an expiration date then this stuff would be expired.”

Rumple rolled his eyes. “What do you expect from air that has been stagnant for centuries?” 

Rumple made his way over to the slab. He slid the switch on the cool metal of the flashlight in his hand and shone the light into the tomb. “I can see a mummy case, some wall paintings, funerary urns, pottery…” 

Midas huffed. “Well, aren’t you going to go down there?”

Rumple turned back to face Midas, annoyance clear on his face. “The sun has already gone down, it’s pitch dark out here, and there is what appears to be about a five foot drop into the tomb so, no, we will do it tomorrow when we have daylight on our side.”

Midas’ gaze narrowed, and Rumple watched the glimmer of an idea pass over his eyes. “I’m the benefactor of this dig and if you will not follow my orders than you will not be paid.” He turned to Jefferson. “You’ve a little girl waiting on you. Single father such as yourself must work doubly hard to prove he should keep his child. It would be a shame if it were to be known that her father had walked off a job and turned his nose up at a paycheck when he and his child barely stay above the poverty line as it is.” 

 

Jefferson went pale at his words. 

Rumple sneered at Midas. How dare the man stoop so low as to threaten Jefferson. Rumple turned to Jefferson and saw that Belle had already looped her arm through his protectively. Jefferson had been like a kid brother to Rumple over the years and it had been him who had gotten Rumple and Belle together. They loved him fiercely and they wouldn’t let him be cornered. Jefferson sighed and grabbed his bag, lowering it gently into the open tomb. 

Rumple stepped forward. “You don’t have to do this Jefferson.” 

Jefferson sighed, “I don’t have to, but… I need to.” 

Belle put a hand on Jefferson’s shoulder. “There is no shame in accepting support from your family, and you are family Jefferson.” 

Jefferson placed his hand on hers and smiled. “I know Belle. You keep reminding me.” He sighed, “I’ll be fine.” 

Belle turned to Rumple with a pleading look in her eyes, and though his every instinct cautioned against it he spoke. “I’ll go with you.” 

Belle shot her I’m proud of you smile his way and replied, “We’re going with you.” 

Rumple shot her his Please, Belle, don’t grimace, but she was already helping Jefferson lower the ladder and the other backpacks. They carefully made their way down the ladder into the darkened tomb and began to look over the contents of this first chamber with their flashlights. Jefferson scribbled notes of the writing on one of the walls, and Belle was already trying to read what it said in the hopes of discovering the owner of the tomb. Rumple took out his sketch pad and began to sketch out the layout of this chamber so that detailed notes on the placement of objects could be made.

POP! Screech! Whip! Crash!

A cloud of sandy air whooshed in their direction leaving them coughing and gagging. 

 

Belle crawled over to Rumple, her voice wavering. “What happened?”  
Rumple held her to his chest, the action comforting him as much if not more than it did her.

“The cord snapped, and the slab fell.” 

Jefferson crawled over to them. “We’re trapped.” 

Belle turned in Rumple’s embrace and took Jefferson’s hand. “They know we’re in here. We just need to be patient while they splice the wire and set up the shears again.” 

 

The three of them sat in silence for a moment and then Belle stood. “We might as well get some work done while we’re in here.” She returned her gaze to the writing on the wall behind the mummy case. “Let’s see if we can discover your identity. Hmm.” She dragged her eyes over the centuries old painted figures. “How strange. I’ve never seen a message like this one before.”

Jefferson shone his light in Belle’s direction. “What does it say?”

Belle sighed. “Well the writing is far older than the slab we were looking at earlier, so I can’t read it fluently. But it basically says that the fellow in this mummy case is a protective guardian with a sacred duty to this place for all of time.”

Jefferson looked at the mummy case. “So, this tomb complex must belong to some important person, right? If they were so worried that they would kill a guy just to have an otherworldly security guard protect it.”

Belle turned around and faced Rumple and Jefferson. “That’s where it gets really strange. The writing doesn’t refer to this place as a tomb. It uses a word more akin to dungeon. And it doesn’t read like this guy is trying to keep people out, it sounds like… well…it speaks of a Dark One who cannot be killed. This Dark One was trapped in a living vessel and confined somewhere in this greater complex. The guy in here is described as a sort of prison guard.”

Jefferson exhaled in a quiet whistle. “I wonder what that dark one guy did that was so bad that it was mythology worthy.”Belle shrugged. “It doesn’t say. At least not on this wall.”

Suddenly all three of their flashlights flickered and died, leaving them in thick darkness. 

 

Rumple huffed, “Those were all fully charged. This makes no sense!” 

 

Jefferson could be heard muttering, “It’s as if something sucked the power out of them.” 

 

Belle whimpered, and Rumple tried to make his way to her. “Sweetheart try to follow my voice and get back to me and Jefferson.”

“Okay.” Belle’s voice was shaky as she tried to get back the few feet to where she had left Rumple and Jefferson. A sound stopped her movement, a noise reminiscent of rock scraping against sand. A sudden breeze gusted through the chamber, and with it a sound somewhere between a moan and a growl. 

 

“What was that?!” Jefferson’s voice betrayed the fear that seemed to be filling the room. Rumple tried to keep them calm. “We will be fine. We just need to stay calm. Belle, keep making your way to us. And Jefferson, reach out your hand toward me.”

 

They both did as they were told. A hand grasped Rumple’s arm in the darkness, holding tightly to his shirt. “Jefferson?” 

 

Jefferson exhaled shakily, “It’s me.” 

Rumple nodded invisibly in the suffocating blackness of the chamber. “That just leaves you, Belle.”

“I’m trying,” Belle answered as she continued to shuffle her feet forward. 

 

All at once she was pushed, almost as if someone had tried to dash past her and had bumped into her in the process. She screamed as she fell to the sandy stone floor with a thunk, and the crash of shattered pottery echoed in the small cavern. The noxious tang of ammonia gas began to fill the room. Rumple could feel Jefferson trembling through the hand that still grasped his shirt sleeve. He tried to move toward the last place he thought he had heard Belle, dragging a frightened Jefferson along with him. 

“Belle!”

 

He heard her begin to cough and wheeze directly in front of him, and he reached out toward the sound. His fingers made contact with her linen shirt, and he began to tug on it. Belle continued to cough and wheeze, but she managed to grab onto Rumple’s arm and he yanked her into his embrace. Tears were streaming from Rumple’s eyes, the moisture only intensifying the pain the gas was inflicting on them. 

 

He felt Jefferson’s grip slacken as he stuttered in a teary voice, “We’re going to die here.” 

 

Rumple held tightly to Belle with one hand and reached down with the arm that Jefferson still had a tentative hold on and squeezed what felt like his thigh. “We’re fine! We’re going to stay together and be fine.”

Belle’s wheezing and gasping slowed and Rumple felt her go lax in his embrace. His voice wavered, but still held authority as he turned toward Jefferson. “Belle needs her inhaler. Where was her backpack?” Jefferson sounded as if he must be crying as he stuttered, “I – I don’t know.”

Rumple tried to think. He closed his eyes, finding the blindness less threatening than the oppressive darkness around them. Think Rumple, think. He tried to retrace Belle’s steps before the lights had gone out. Most likely the backpack was still near the base of the ladder that should be directly behind them. He needed to find a wall and follow it. 

“Jefferson?” Rumple could hear him whimpering next to him. “Jefferson, the backpack is by the ladder. I want you to hug me. We’re going to hold Belle between us and move backward. On our knees we’re going to scoot. We don’t want to break open any other surprises.” 

“All right,” Jefferson said shakily.  
Together they scooted until Rumple felt a wall at his back. Now he need only find the backpack. 

“Jefferson, I want you to hold on to Belle and let me go.” Jefferson only held onto him tighter. Rumple tried to calm him. “It will be all right. We’re against the wall. I’m going to feel my way along it to the backpack and then back to you.” 

 

Jefferson’s voice was no more than a whimper, “Please don’t leave me.” 

 

Rumple’s heart ached at his words, and he thought back to the long ago fire that had nearly claimed his best friend and adopted brother’s life. “I never have. I never would.” He felt Jefferson’s grip relax. 

 

Rumple tried to take shallow breaths, the gas beginning to give him a nauseating headache made all the more terrible by the disorienting blindness he felt at the darkness crowding around him. At last he felt the backpack. He carefully ran his hand along its surface to the pocket with the inhaler. He gave a small sigh of relief as he placed the inhaler in his pocket, pulled the backpack onto one arm, and then began to feel his way back to Belle and Jefferson. 

 

As he crawled back he couldn’t help but feel like there was something watching him in the darkness. He shoved the thought away, but he couldn’t help but freeze as he felt … it couldn’t be… but it felt like moist breath on the back of his neck. 

Suddenly there was a sound of sand being furiously rubbed against stone. Come on Rumple, stay calm, stay focused. He continued moving forward until he felt what must have been Jefferson’s ankle. “Is that you Rum?” Jefferson’s voice trembled as he whispered. 

Rumple replied, “I’m here” and heard Jefferson whisper, “Thank you” but Rumple suspected the words weren’t directed at him. “I’ve got to get Belle to use the inhaler.” 

He felt for Belle’s face and when he found it he gave her cheek a gentle pat. She wheezed in response, so Rumple carefully slid the inhaler in his other hand down the length of the arm that had found her face. He moved the inhaler around gently until he found her mouth and tried his best to pump the aerosol medication into it. He let her rest a moment and then gave her another puff. The three of them were silent for a moment, but then Belle took a breath and spoke in a weak whisper, “What happened? What’s that gas?”

Rumple pressed a kiss to her head, happy to hear her voice once more. “You fell, sweetheart. You must have broken one of the containers.” 

 

Jefferson pushed himself closer, “Why would there be poison gas in a container in here?” 

 

“The contents of the container were probably food of some kind meant as an offering,” Rumple explained. “The contents rot, and as they do, they create gas. Judging by the smell of it, I’d guess it’s ammonia.” Rumple felt Belle stiffen in his arms as she spoke. “I didn’t trip, I was pushed. And I didn’t break anything. All of the pots were on the far wall, nowhere near me.”

 

Rumple could feel that he was losing Belle and Jefferson to terror, so he sought to soothe their fears. “Then the container probably broke due to shaking caused by the shears being set up, or perhaps there was a collapse in another chamber. That would explain the breeze, you falling, the broken pottery…” 

 

Jefferson eased somewhat at Rumple’s words, but Belle remained unconvinced. She knew what it felt like to be pushed, and she was most certainly pushed. But it wouldn’t serve a purpose to argue the point. Not now.

The sudden sound of rock scraping rock startled them and then a light, cold and white, shone down the length of the ladder. They squinted at the sudden burst of light as air rushed in, smelling of diesel and the desert. They looked up to see the starry sky. 

Jefferson sighed in relief and helped Rumple push Belle up the ladder to safety. 

 

“You next.” Rumple placed his hand on Jefferson’s shoulder and gently pushed him toward the ladder. Jefferson smiled, teary-eyed, and began the climb. 

 

Rumple gripped the rungs and began to climb, only to feel unearthly arms wrap around his chest and pull him backward. 

 

He fell onto his back on the hard stone floor and was dragged backward into the darkness of the chamber. He tried to call out, to get up, but the force that had pulled him seemed to be sit upon him like a great weight holding him down. Dimly, he could hear Jefferson frantically shouting his name down the ladder. He tried to answer, but it was as if the air had become a thick syrupy liquid pushing into his nose and mouth, filling his lungs and stomach. He felt painfully full and his chest burned as darkness overtook him. 

 

Rumple awakened to a starry sky above and the feeling of movement. His eyes shifted, taking in his surroundings. He was being carried on a stretcher, with Belle and Jefferson walking along and holding his hands. The stretcher carriers stopped at the jeep, and Rumple gave their hands a squeeze. 

 

Belle and Jefferson’s faces were tearstained and pale and it worried him that perhaps he was worse off than he felt. The stretcher was lowered to the ground and Rumple made to get up, only to be restrained by both Belle and Jefferson. 

 

Belle knelt next to him on the ground, kissing his forehead and gulping air.  
He brought his opposite arm up and patted her on the head and whispered, “Sweetheart, you’ll give yourself an attack. I’m all right.”  
She nodded and smiled as she wiped the tears from her eyes. Jefferson placed a hand behind his back and began to help him sit up and then stand. 

 

Jefferson explained as they got into the jeep that the medic on site didn’t believe that they would suffer any long-term effects from the gas, and that it seemed that Rumple had probably been overwhelmed with a combination of stress and lack of good air and that it had led to his temporary loss of consciousness.

 

Rumple nodded in agreement, but he felt in his soul that the truth was much less scientific and a lot darker. And yet, he felt… good. He felt strong. The aged feeling that sometimes plagued him was gone. Even his bad ankle no longer pained him. They entered the hotel, tired but relieved, and despite the fact that Rumple had told them both that he could walk just fine, both Belle and Jefferson insisted on walking arm-and-arm with him back to his and Belle’s suite. They went in, and at their urging, Rumple took a seat in the leather arm chair. 

 

Belle sighed, as if to release all the stress from their recent events. “I’m going to shower and then in you go.” 

 

Rumple nodded as Belle made for the bathroom. Jefferson knelt down beside the armchair and Rumple brushed the hair from his downturned face. “What’s wrong?” 

 

Jefferson looked up and for a moment he was the small child of four that Rumple remembered taking under his wing as a boy. “Can Grace and I stay with you? I know you’ve offered before, but… I just… I need…”  
Rumple petted his hair gently. “Yes, you need to be with your family now.” Jefferson nodded. Rumple smiled warmly. “You and the wee one are always welcome. Never doubt your place with us.” 

 

It was the wee hours of the morning now, and Rumple continued to sit in the chair, not feeling at all tired. He watched as Belle and Grace cuddled in the large bed and Jefferson snored quietly on the couch. 

 

They had a cot sent up for Rumple, which he had offered to Jefferson, but Jefferson had flatly refused. There were times when Jefferson and Belle were too protective of him, but he supposed it wasn’t nearly as protective as he was of them. He smiled to himself in the dark and then felt worry tug at him once more. He knew what he had felt when he was pinned in the darkness of that chamber. Perhaps it was simply the creation of his oxygen-starved mind, but it felt real. 

He absentmindedly took the worry stone he carried in his pocket, a gift from Belle, and began to rub it. He focused on its weight and feel in his hands and his worry begin to lessen. 

 

He sighed and rose to his feet, intending to place the stone next to his wallet upon the table and lay down on the cot. He paused, staring in astonishment. The light from the table lamp glittered upon the surface of the rock. What had been a simple gray stone now appeared to be solid gold.


End file.
